Welsh mythology in popular culture
Encyclopedia
Elements of Welsh mythology
have appeared many times in popular culture.
's The Dark Is Rising sequence features an afanc which inhabits Llyn Barfog. It is driven away by the son of King Arthur.
China Miéville
's The Scar
features a large afanc (spelled as avanc), bound by chains to tow the city of Armada
across the oceans. The afanc in The Scar is of phenomenal size, so vast that to observers one vein on the creature's surface looks like a 20 feet (6.1 m) high ridge.
The Afanc plays a leading role in episode three of Merlin
- it's a creature made of earth and water which can be destroyed by fire and wind. It poisons Camelot's water supply, causing a supernatural plague.
The Lord of the Rings Online features the afanc (here spelled as avanc) as a species of salamander-like beasts that dwell in and around bodies of water in Dunland. A tribe of swamp-dwelling Dunlendings subsist in part off the beasts, and call themselves the Avanc-luth.
Arawn
Blodeuwedd
, with which it has been compared by some modern authors, Cantre'r Gwaelod has featured in fiction with a Welsh flavour, notably the alternate universe Louie Knight
series. In the satirical parody Aberystwyth Mon Amour, a group of Druids plan to launch an ark and reclaim the land of Cantre'r Gwaelod.
Cantre'r Gwaelod is also a major location in Susan Cooper
's Silver On The Tree, the fifth and final book in her series The Dark is Rising.
The British musical group The Lowland Hundred
take its name from the English translation of Cantre'r Gwaelod.
Culhwch and Olwen
Tale of Culhwch and Olwen appears on Gems of Celtic Story One, by Robin Williamson
.
Culhwch and Olwen also appear as the characters Kilhwch and Ulla http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Ulla in the Final Fantasy XI MMORPG.
Cŵn Annwn
Diana Wynne Jones
' children's novel Dogsbody includes both Cŵn Annwn and hybrids of Cŵn Annwn and Labrador retrievers.
In Michael Scott's The Sorceress: Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel the Wild Hunt is a dominant antagonist to Nicholas Flamel and Josh and Sophie Newman.
In Final Fantasy XI
, NPC enemies named Cwm Annwn show up, resembling emaciated hounds.
In The Lord of the Rings Online, the Cwn Annwn (here spelled Cun Annun) appear in the Welsh-themed lands of Dunland as a species of ghostly hounds with glowing red eyes.
Gwydion
Lloyd Alexander
's Chronicles of Prydain, a series of fantasy
novels inspired by Welsh myths, features a character named Gwydion, based somewhat on the Gwydion of myth, but markedly different in terms of moral character. (The character is not included in the Disney animated film based on the novels.)
Patricia Kennealy-Morrison
's Keltiad
series - Irish
, Welsh
and Scottish legends
translated to an interstellar, Star Wars
style context — has a character named Gwydion Prince of Don as its co-protagonist. Like Alexander, Kennealy-Morrison bases her character on the mythological Gwydion, but humanizes him through her own creative process.
He also appears in Phillip Mann
's alternate history
series A Land Fit for Heroes. Judith Tarr
's fantasy series, The Hound and the Falcon
and the Alamut series
, features Gwydion as the immortal elf king of Rhiyana, a side character in both series. Robert Carter's "The Language of Stones" series, has a short appearance in American Gods
by Neil Gaiman
and is the ancestor to the main character in Jenny Nimmo
's Snow Spider Trilogy. In The Mists of Avalon
, Gwydion is the birth name of both King Arthur
and Mordred
. The name Gwydion also appears in the Sierra game King's Quest III, where a Prince Alexander of Daventry has been kidnapped by an evil wizard named Manannan who renames him Gwydion.
Gwydion is also one of the main protagonists in the books of the Welsh
author Jenny Sullivan
.
Llŷr
Lloyd Alexander
's Chronicles of Prydain includes a "House of Llŷr", a royal family whose female members are often enchantresses. The Princess Eilonwy, the heroine in the series, is the daughter of Angharad
, daughter of Regat of the House of Llŷr.
Jenny Nimmo
's "The Magician Trilogy
" (also known as "The Snow Spider Triology" draws on the stories of the Llŷrs, especially "The Chestnut Soldier", in which the descendants of the Llŷr line find the legends repeating themselves.
Olwen
Andrew Lang
retold the tale in "The Winning of Olwen" for The Lilac Fairy Book.
This name was also used by Monica Hughes
in the young adult novel Keeper of the Isis Light
.
Pryderi
Pryderi appears as a powerful king in The High King
, the fifth and final novel of Lloyd Alexander
's Chronicles of Prydain. Pryderi also appears in the "Goddess of Partholon series, by "House of Night" author P.C. Cast. In Book 3 - Divine by Choice, the daughter of Rhiannon MacCallan from Bk. 1 and 2 must face a choice of whether to give in to the evil that controlled her mother, which turns out to be Pryderi, or help destroy it - she chooses the latter by embracing Pyderi and then throwing herself on a funeral pyre.
Rhiannon
The Rhiannon myth was the inspiration for the song Rhiannon
by Stevie Nicks
, who read the name in a novel by Mary Leader
called Triad during a flight, liked the name, and wrote the song in 10 minutes. She later learned of the Welsh myth and was shocked to learn that her song fit the myth, though it is likely that the novel, Triad, is loosely based on the Welsh Triads
, medieval mnemonic lists of people and places in Welsh tradition. "Angel
" by Stevie Nicks
of Fleetwood Mac
and "The Birds of Rhiannon" by Faith and the Muse
are based on this myth, as well as the song "Rhiannon" from German folk band, Faun
.
Leigh Brackett
wrote the science-fiction novel, The Sword Of Rhiannon, first published in 1949 as Sea-Kings of Mars, although the story has no direct relation to the myth.
In T.A. Barron's series of novels The Lost Years of Merlin
, Rhiannon is the full name of Rhia, a forest girl whom Merlin
meets on the island of Fincayra and who turns out to be his lost twin sister.
The Song of Rhiannon is an opera
tic treatment of the myth, composed by Mark Bowden
with a libretto by Helen Cooper
, first performed by W11 Opera
in 2008.
Welsh mythology
Welsh mythology, the remnants of the mythology of the pre-Christian Britons, has come down to us in much altered form in medieval Welsh manuscripts such as the Red Book of Hergest, the White Book of Rhydderch, the Book of Aneirin and the Book of Taliesin....
have appeared many times in popular culture.
Afanc
Susan CooperSusan Cooper
Susan Mary Cooper is an English author best known for The Dark Is Rising, an award-winning five-volume saga set in and around England and Wales. The books incorporate traditional British mythology, such as Arthurian and other Welsh elements with original material ; these books were adapted into a...
's The Dark Is Rising sequence features an afanc which inhabits Llyn Barfog. It is driven away by the son of King Arthur.
China Miéville
China Miéville
China Tom Miéville is an award-winning English fantasy fiction writer. He is fond of describing his work as "weird fiction" , and belongs to a loose group of writers sometimes called New Weird. He is also active in left-wing politics as a member of the Socialist Workers Party...
's The Scar
The Scar
The Scar is the third novel written by China Miéville, a self-described "weird fiction" writer from London, England. The Scar won the 2003 British Fantasy Award and was shortlisted for the 2003 Arthur C. Clarke Award. Miéville won both these awards in 2001 for his previous novel, Perdido Street...
features a large afanc (spelled as avanc), bound by chains to tow the city of Armada
Armada (Bas-Lag)
Armada is the name of the fictional floating city in China Miéville's novel The Scar. The city is part of the fictional universe Bas-Lag. It is over a thousand years old, and little is known of its origins...
across the oceans. The afanc in The Scar is of phenomenal size, so vast that to observers one vein on the creature's surface looks like a 20 feet (6.1 m) high ridge.
The Afanc plays a leading role in episode three of Merlin
Merlin (TV series)
Merlin is a British fantasy-adventure television programme by Julian Jones, Jake Michie, Julian Murphy and Johnny Capps. It began broadcasting on BBC One on 20 September 2008. The show is based on the Arthurian legends of the wizard Merlin and his relationship with Prince Arthur but differs from...
- it's a creature made of earth and water which can be destroyed by fire and wind. It poisons Camelot's water supply, causing a supernatural plague.
The Lord of the Rings Online features the afanc (here spelled as avanc) as a species of salamander-like beasts that dwell in and around bodies of water in Dunland. A tribe of swamp-dwelling Dunlendings subsist in part off the beasts, and call themselves the Avanc-luth.
ArawnArawnIn Welsh mythology, Arawn was the king of the otherworld realm of Annwn, appearing prominently in the first branch, and alluded to in the fourth. In later tradition, the role of king of Annwn was largely attributed to the Welsh psychopomp, Gwyn ap Nudd...
- In Lloyd AlexanderLloyd AlexanderLloyd Chudley Alexander was a widely influential American author of more than forty books, mostly fantasy novels for children and adolescents, as well as several adult books...
's The Chronicles of PrydainThe Chronicles of PrydainThe Chronicles of Prydain is a five-volume series of children's fantasy novels by author Lloyd Alexander...
, a series of fantasyFantasyFantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
novels inspired by Welsh mythology, Arawn is the series' unseen central villain. He was once a mortal man with magical powers, until he became the consort of AchrenAchrenAchren is a fictional character and villainess in the fantasy series The Chronicles of Prydain, written by Lloyd Alexander.-Profile:In the novels, Achren was once Queen of Prydain, and ruled many years as a harsh and vengeful tyrant, both as ruler and then as the Death-lord Arawn's consort...
, the Queen of Annuvin. After learning of her powers he betrayed her, usurping the iron crown of Annuvin and the title of Death-Lord for himself. He would have conquered all of Prydain had the Sons of Don not intervened. - Arawn and the Cwn Annwn appear in Diana Wynne JonesDiana Wynne JonesDiana Wynne Jones was a British writer, principally of fantasy novels for children and adults, as well as a small amount of non-fiction...
's 1975 fantasy novel DogsbodyDogsbody (novel)-Plot summary:The main action of this novel is framed as follows. Sirius, the Dog Star, has been falsely convicted of murdering a fellow "luminary" and of losing the Zoi, an extremely dangerous weapon that he has allowed to fall to a minor planet...
. - Arawn plays an important role in Mythic EntertainmentMythic EntertainmentBioWare Mythic is a computer game developer in Fairfax, Virginia which is most widely recognized for developing the 2001 massively multiplayer online role-playing game Dark Age of Camelot...
's Dark Age of CamelotDark Age of CamelotDark Age of Camelot is a 3D medieval fantasy MMORPG, released on October 10 2001 in North America and in Europe shortly after through it's partner GOA. It is still running today recently celebrating its 10th anniversary....
, in which he is a patron god to the Inconnu race, as well as the Reaver, Heretic and Necromancer classes. - Arawn is the protagonist of the Leaf game Tears to TiaraTears to TiaraTears to Tiara is a Japanese eroge tactical role-playing game developed by Leaf. It was first released for PC on April 28, 2005 in Japan. Then it was followed by 12 years old and up version released for the PlayStation 3 platform on July 17, 2008 in Japan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan in which the...
. In it, he is first born as the thirteenth of the twelve holy spirits serving the absolute god Vatos, under the name of Lucifer. However, certain events cause him to turn against the twelve spirits and side with the mortals (including the king of elves, PwyllPwyllPwyll Pen Annwn is a prominent figure in Welsh mythology and literature, the lord of Dyfed, husband of Rhiannon and father of the hero Pryderi...
) in a war against heaven, taking on the name "Arawn" in the process. - Arawn is also a character from the video game Beyond the BeyondBeyond the BeyondBeyond the Beyond, known in Japan as , is a role-playing video game that was developed by Camelot Software Planning and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation in 1995...
, in which he is an omnipotent god who lives atop a tower in the middle of a desert. Halfway through the game, he cures Samson of a powerful and deadly curse. - Arawn is a character in Mythic EntertainmentMythic EntertainmentBioWare Mythic is a computer game developer in Fairfax, Virginia which is most widely recognized for developing the 2001 massively multiplayer online role-playing game Dark Age of Camelot...
's Warhammer Online fantasy massively multiplayer online role-playing gameMassively multiplayer online role-playing gameMassively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
.
BlodeuweddBlodeuweddBlodeuwedd or Blodeuedd, , is the wife of Lleu Llaw Gyffes in Welsh mythology, made from the flowers of broom, meadowsweet and the oak by the magicians Math and Gwydion, and is a central figure in the fourth branch of the Mabinogi.-Role in Welsh tradition:The...
- Welsh dramatist Saunders LewisSaunders LewisSaunders Lewis was a Welsh poet, dramatist, historian, literary critic, and political activist. He was a prominent Welsh nationalist and a founder of the Welsh National Party...
wrote the play Blodeuwedd based on the original Mabinogi tale. The play, in eloquent verse, has frequently been acclaimed as one of the finest of Welsh languageWelsh languageWelsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
dramaDramaDrama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
s. - The story of Blodeuwedd figures largely in the 1967 young adult novel by Alan GarnerAlan GarnerWith his first book published, Garner abandoned his work as a labourer and gained a job as a freelance television reporter, living a "hand to mouth" lifestyle on a "shoestring" budget...
, The Owl ServiceThe Owl ServiceThe Owl Service is a novel by Alan Garner first published in 1967. It is a contemporary interpretation, which Garner described as an "expression of the myth", of the story of the mythical Welsh figure of Blodeuwedd, whose story is told in the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi.The legend concerns a...
. - Irish languageIrish languageIrish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
poet Nuala Ní DhomhnaillNuala Ní DhomhnaillNuala Ní Dhomhnaill is an Irish poet.Born in Lancashire, England in 1952, of Irish parents, she moved to Ireland at the age of 5, and was brought up in the Dingle Gaeltacht and in Nenagh, County Tipperary. Her uncle is Monsignor Pádraig Ó Fiannachta of An Daingean, the leading authority alive on...
composed "Blodewedd"; in her bilingual collection "Pharaoh's Daughter" it is translated by John MontagueJohn Montague (poet)John Montague is an Irish poet. He was born in New York and brought up in Tyrone. He has published a number of volumes of poetry, two collections of short stories and two volumes of memoir. He is one of the best known Irish contemporary poets...
.
Cantre'r Gwaelod
Although not as famous as AtlantisAtlantis
Atlantis is a legendary island first mentioned in Plato's dialogues Timaeus and Critias, written about 360 BC....
, with which it has been compared by some modern authors, Cantre'r Gwaelod has featured in fiction with a Welsh flavour, notably the alternate universe Louie Knight
Louie Knight
The Louie Knight novels are a series of cult detective novels written by Malcolm Pryce set in an alternative universe of the Welsh town of Aberystwyth, and centring on Aberystwyth's one private eye Louie Knight...
series. In the satirical parody Aberystwyth Mon Amour, a group of Druids plan to launch an ark and reclaim the land of Cantre'r Gwaelod.
Cantre'r Gwaelod is also a major location in Susan Cooper
Susan Cooper
Susan Mary Cooper is an English author best known for The Dark Is Rising, an award-winning five-volume saga set in and around England and Wales. The books incorporate traditional British mythology, such as Arthurian and other Welsh elements with original material ; these books were adapted into a...
's Silver On The Tree, the fifth and final book in her series The Dark is Rising.
The British musical group The Lowland Hundred
The Lowland Hundred (band)
The Lowland Hundred is a British musical group, based in Aberystwyth, Wales. The band has been active since 2008. Its core members are Paul Newland and Tim Noble....
take its name from the English translation of Cantre'r Gwaelod.
Culhwch and OlwenCulhwch and OlwenCulhwch and Olwen is a Welsh tale about a hero connected with Arthur and his warriors that survives in only two manuscripts: a complete version in the Red Book of Hergest, ca. 1400, and a fragmented version in the White Book of Rhydderch, ca. 1325. It is the longest of the surviving Welsh prose...
Tale of Culhwch and Olwen appears on Gems of Celtic Story One, by Robin WilliamsonRobin Williamson
Robin Williamson is a Scottish multi-instrumentalist musician, singer, songwriter and storyteller, who first made his name as a founder member of The Incredible String Band.-Career:...
.
Culhwch and Olwen also appear as the characters Kilhwch and Ulla http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Ulla in the Final Fantasy XI MMORPG.
Cŵn AnnwnCwn AnnwnIn Welsh mythology and folklore, Cŵn Annwn were the spectral hounds of Annwn, the otherworld of Welsh myth. They were associated with a form of the Wild Hunt, presided over by Gwynn ap Nudd...
Diana Wynne JonesDiana Wynne Jones
Diana Wynne Jones was a British writer, principally of fantasy novels for children and adults, as well as a small amount of non-fiction...
' children's novel Dogsbody includes both Cŵn Annwn and hybrids of Cŵn Annwn and Labrador retrievers.
In Michael Scott's The Sorceress: Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel the Wild Hunt is a dominant antagonist to Nicholas Flamel and Josh and Sophie Newman.
In Final Fantasy XI
Final Fantasy XI
, also known as Final Fantasy XI Online, is a MMORPG developed and published by Square as part of the Final Fantasy series. It was released in Japan on Sony's PlayStation 2 on May 16, 2002, and was released for Microsoft's Windows-based personal computers in November 2002...
, NPC enemies named Cwm Annwn show up, resembling emaciated hounds.
In The Lord of the Rings Online, the Cwn Annwn (here spelled Cun Annun) appear in the Welsh-themed lands of Dunland as a species of ghostly hounds with glowing red eyes.
GwydionGwydionGwydion fab Dôn is a magician, hero and trickster of Welsh mythology, appearing most prominently in the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi, which focuses largely on his relationship with his young nephew, Lleu Llaw Gyffes...
Lloyd AlexanderLloyd Alexander
Lloyd Chudley Alexander was a widely influential American author of more than forty books, mostly fantasy novels for children and adolescents, as well as several adult books...
's Chronicles of Prydain, a series of fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
novels inspired by Welsh myths, features a character named Gwydion, based somewhat on the Gwydion of myth, but markedly different in terms of moral character. (The character is not included in the Disney animated film based on the novels.)
Patricia Kennealy-Morrison
Patricia Kennealy-Morrison
Patricia Kennealy-Morrison is an American author and journalist. Her published works include rock criticism, a memoir, and a series of science fiction/fantasy and murder mystery novels...
's Keltiad
The Keltiad
The Keltiad is a body of fantasy works written by Patricia Kennealy-Morrison. Currently there are eight novels in the series.The books are set in a star system far from our own, where various Celtic peoples emigrated after the rise of Christianity and the purge of the Old Religion that followed...
series - Irish
Irish mythology
The mythology of pre-Christian Ireland did not entirely survive the conversion to Christianity, but much of it was preserved, shorn of its religious meanings, in medieval Irish literature, which represents the most extensive and best preserved of all the branch and the Historical Cycle. There are...
, Welsh
Welsh mythology
Welsh mythology, the remnants of the mythology of the pre-Christian Britons, has come down to us in much altered form in medieval Welsh manuscripts such as the Red Book of Hergest, the White Book of Rhydderch, the Book of Aneirin and the Book of Taliesin....
and Scottish legends
Scottish mythology
Scottish mythology may refer to any of the mythologies of Scotland.Myths have emerged for various purposes throughout the history of Scotland, sometimes being elaborated upon by successive generations, and at other times being completely rejected and replaced by other explanatory narratives.-...
translated to an interstellar, Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
style context — has a character named Gwydion Prince of Don as its co-protagonist. Like Alexander, Kennealy-Morrison bases her character on the mythological Gwydion, but humanizes him through her own creative process.
He also appears in Phillip Mann
Phillip Mann
Phillip Mann is a British-born, science fiction author resident in New Zealand since 1969.He studied English and Drama at Manchester University and later in California before moving to New Zealand where he established the first Drama Studies position at a New Zealand University. Between 1968 and...
's alternate history
Alternate history (fiction)
Alternate history or alternative history is a genre of fiction consisting of stories that are set in worlds in which history has diverged from the actual history of the world. It can be variously seen as a sub-genre of literary fiction, science fiction, and historical fiction; different alternate...
series A Land Fit for Heroes. Judith Tarr
Judith Tarr
Judith Tarr is an American author, best known for her fantasy books. She received her B.A. in Latin and English from Mount Holyoke College in 1976, and has an M.A. in Classics from Cambridge University, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Medieval Studies from Yale University...
's fantasy series, The Hound and the Falcon
The Hound and the Falcon
The Hound and the Falcon is a fantasy book trilogy by Judith Tarr, containing the books The Isle of Glass , The Golden Horn , and The Hounds of God ....
and the Alamut series
Alamut series
The Alamut series consists of the two fantasy books Alamut and The Dagger and the Cross by Judith Tarr...
, features Gwydion as the immortal elf king of Rhiyana, a side character in both series. Robert Carter's "The Language of Stones" series, has a short appearance in American Gods
American Gods
American Gods is a Hugo and Nebula Award-winning novel by Neil Gaiman. The novel is a blend of Americana, fantasy, and various strands of ancient and modern mythology, all centering on a mysterious and taciturn protagonist, Shadow. It is Gaiman's fourth prose novel, being preceded by Good Omens ,...
by Neil Gaiman
Neil Gaiman
Neil Richard Gaiman born 10 November 1960)is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, graphic novels, audio theatre and films. His notable works include the comic book series The Sandman and novels Stardust, American Gods, Coraline, and The Graveyard Book...
and is the ancestor to the main character in Jenny Nimmo
Jenny Nimmo
Jenny Nimmo is a British author of numerous books for children, including many fantasy and adventure novels, beginning reader books, and picture books....
's Snow Spider Trilogy. In The Mists of Avalon
The Mists of Avalon
The Mists of Avalon is a 1983 novel by Marion Zimmer Bradley, in which she relates the Arthurian legends from the perspective of the female characters.-Plot introduction:...
, Gwydion is the birth name of both King Arthur
King Arthur
King Arthur is a legendary British leader of the late 5th and early 6th centuries, who, according to Medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore and literary invention, and...
and Mordred
Mordred
Mordred or Modred is a character in the Arthurian legend, known as a notorious traitor who fought King Arthur at the Battle of Camlann, where he was killed and Arthur fatally wounded. Tradition varies on his relationship to Arthur, but he is best known today as Arthur's illegitimate son by his...
. The name Gwydion also appears in the Sierra game King's Quest III, where a Prince Alexander of Daventry has been kidnapped by an evil wizard named Manannan who renames him Gwydion.
Gwydion is also one of the main protagonists in the books of the Welsh
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
author Jenny Sullivan
Jenny Sullivan
For the Welsh author see Jennifer Sullivan.Jenny Sullivan is an American actress who has starred in films and on television. She has starred in some made for TV movies, her best known role is in the 1983 NBC hit miniseries V as the reporter Kristine Walsh. In 1984, she reprised her role as...
.
LlŷrLlyrLlŷr is a figure in Welsh mythology, the father of Brân, Brânwen and Manawydan by Penarddun. The Welsh Triads mention he was imprisoned by Euroswydd; the Second Branch of the Mabinogi names Euroswydd as the father of Penarddun's younger two sons, Nisien and Efnisien. Llŷr corresponds to Lir in...
Lloyd AlexanderLloyd Alexander
Lloyd Chudley Alexander was a widely influential American author of more than forty books, mostly fantasy novels for children and adolescents, as well as several adult books...
's Chronicles of Prydain includes a "House of Llŷr", a royal family whose female members are often enchantresses. The Princess Eilonwy, the heroine in the series, is the daughter of Angharad
Angharad
Angharad is a popular Welsh name, having a long association with Welsh royalty, history and myth. It translates to .-Mythology:Angharad, also sometimes known as Angharad Golden-Hand, is the lover of Peredur in the Welsh myth cycle The Mabinogion. In some versions of the story, Peredur meets her...
, daughter of Regat of the House of Llŷr.
Jenny Nimmo
Jenny Nimmo
Jenny Nimmo is a British author of numerous books for children, including many fantasy and adventure novels, beginning reader books, and picture books....
's "The Magician Trilogy
The Magician Trilogy
The Magician Trilogy, also published in an omnibus edition as The Snow Spider Trilogy, is a trilogy of children's fantasy novels by Jenny Nimmo, author of the Children of the Red King series...
" (also known as "The Snow Spider Triology" draws on the stories of the Llŷrs, especially "The Chestnut Soldier", in which the descendants of the Llŷr line find the legends repeating themselves.
OlwenOlwenIn Welsh mythology, Olwen is the daughter of the giant Ysbaddaden and cousin of Goreu. She is the heroine of the story Culhwch and Olwen in the Mabinogion....
Andrew LangAndrew Lang
Andrew Lang was a Scots poet, novelist, literary critic, and contributor to the field of anthropology. He is best known as a collector of folk and fairy tales. The Andrew Lang lectures at the University of St Andrews are named after him.- Biography :Lang was born in Selkirk...
retold the tale in "The Winning of Olwen" for The Lilac Fairy Book.
This name was also used by Monica Hughes
Monica Hughes
-External links:***...
in the young adult novel Keeper of the Isis Light
Keeper of the Isis Light
The Keeper of the Isis Light is a science fiction novel aimed at young adults by Monica Hughes. It was published in 1980 by Hamish Hamilton. The story takes place some time in the distant future on the fictional world of Isis, which revolves around the F5 star Ra in the constellation Indus.The...
.
PryderiPryderiPryderi fab Pwyll is a prominent figure in Welsh mythology, the son of Pwyll and Rhiannon, and king of Dyfed following his father's death. He is the only character to appear in all Four Branches of the Mabinogi, although the size of his role varies from tale to tale...
Pryderi appears as a powerful king in The High KingThe High King
The High King is the last book in the Chronicles of Prydain fantasy series of books by Lloyd Alexander. It was awarded the Newbery Medal for excellence in American children's literature in 1969.-Plot overview:...
, the fifth and final novel of Lloyd Alexander
Lloyd Alexander
Lloyd Chudley Alexander was a widely influential American author of more than forty books, mostly fantasy novels for children and adolescents, as well as several adult books...
's Chronicles of Prydain. Pryderi also appears in the "Goddess of Partholon series, by "House of Night" author P.C. Cast. In Book 3 - Divine by Choice, the daughter of Rhiannon MacCallan from Bk. 1 and 2 must face a choice of whether to give in to the evil that controlled her mother, which turns out to be Pryderi, or help destroy it - she chooses the latter by embracing Pyderi and then throwing herself on a funeral pyre.
RhiannonRhiannonRhiannon is a prominent figure in Welsh mythology, mother to the Demetian hero Pryderi and wife to Pwyll . She is probably a reflex of the Celtic Great Queen goddess Rigantona and may also be associated with the horse goddess Epona.She appears in both the first and third branches of the Mabinogi...
The Rhiannon myth was the inspiration for the song RhiannonRhiannon (song)
"Rhiannon" is a single released by Fleetwood Mac in 1976. The song was written by Stevie Nicks."Rhiannon" was voted #488 in The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time by Rolling Stone magazine. Its US chart peak was in June 1976, when it hit #11...
by Stevie Nicks
Stevie Nicks
Stephanie Lynn "Stevie" Nicks is an American singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Fleetwood Mac and an extensive solo career, which collectively have produced over forty Top 50 hits and sold over 140 million albums...
, who read the name in a novel by Mary Leader
Mary Leader
Mary Leader Mary Leader Mary Leader (born 1948 Pawnee, Oklahoma is a poet, and former Assistant Attorney General of Oklahoma.-Life:She graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1975, with a J.D. in 1980, from Warren Wilson College with a M.F.A. in 1991, and from Brandeis University with a Ph.D....
called Triad during a flight, liked the name, and wrote the song in 10 minutes. She later learned of the Welsh myth and was shocked to learn that her song fit the myth, though it is likely that the novel, Triad, is loosely based on the Welsh Triads
Welsh Triads
The Welsh Triads are a group of related texts in medieval manuscripts which preserve fragments of Welsh folklore, mythology and traditional history in groups of three. The triad is a rhetorical form whereby objects are grouped together in threes, with a heading indicating the point of likeness...
, medieval mnemonic lists of people and places in Welsh tradition. "Angel
Angel (Fleetwood Mac song)
"Angel" is a song written and performed by Stevie Nicks on the Fleetwood Mac album Tusk. Nicks attributed the song to the story of Rhiannon in the Mabinogion and in particular Arawn, who is the great lord of darkness....
" by Stevie Nicks
Stevie Nicks
Stephanie Lynn "Stevie" Nicks is an American singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Fleetwood Mac and an extensive solo career, which collectively have produced over forty Top 50 hits and sold over 140 million albums...
of Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac are a British–American rock band formed in 1967 in London.The only original member present in the band is its eponymous drummer, Mick Fleetwood...
and "The Birds of Rhiannon" by Faith and the Muse
Faith and the Muse
Faith and the Muse is an American, underground gothic/darkwave band composed of two musicians, Monica Richards and William Faith. They are well regarded in the gothic music scene as innovators and icons. Their music encompasses many genres, from folk-style songs to darker compositions. Richards is...
are based on this myth, as well as the song "Rhiannon" from German folk band, Faun
Faun (band)
Faun is a German band formed in 2002 who play pagan folk, darkwave and medieval music. The originality of their music style is that they fall back to "old" instruments, and the singing is always the center of attention. The vocals are performed in a variety of languages, including German, Latin,...
.
Leigh Brackett
Leigh Brackett
Leigh Douglass Brackett was an American author, particularly of science fiction. She was also a screenwriter, known for her work on famous films such as The Big Sleep , Rio Bravo , The Long Goodbye and The Empire Strikes Back .-Life:Leigh Brackett was born and grew up in Los Angeles, California...
wrote the science-fiction novel, The Sword Of Rhiannon, first published in 1949 as Sea-Kings of Mars, although the story has no direct relation to the myth.
In T.A. Barron's series of novels The Lost Years of Merlin
The Lost Years of Merlin
The Lost Years of Merlin is a work of literature by T.A. Barron, published by Penguin Group USA. It tells the tale of the legendary wizard Merlin's youth. Though the character Merlin is world famous as an ancient wizard, this story of his lost youth is original to the author...
, Rhiannon is the full name of Rhia, a forest girl whom Merlin
Merlin
Merlin is a legendary figure best known as the wizard featured in the Arthurian legend. The standard depiction of the character first appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae, written c. 1136, and is based on an amalgamation of previous historical and legendary figures...
meets on the island of Fincayra and who turns out to be his lost twin sister.
The Song of Rhiannon is an opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
tic treatment of the myth, composed by Mark Bowden
Mark Bowden
Not to be confused with Mark Bowden, U.N. Resident & Humanitarian Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative for Somalia.Mark Robert Bowden is an American writer and a contributing editor at Vanity Fair. Born in St. Louis, Missouri, he is a 1973 graduate of Loyola University Maryland...
with a libretto by Helen Cooper
Helen Cooper
Helen Cooper may refer to:*Helen Cooper , of Medieval and Renaissance English*Helen Cooper , illustrator and author of children’s books*Helen Cooper , former mayor of Kingston, Ontario...
, first performed by W11 Opera
W11 Opera
W11 Opera is an independent opera company which produces operas performed by young people aged 9 to 18. Founded in 1971, it takes its name from its location in W11, a postal district in West London consisting largely of Notting Hill and parts of Holland Park....
in 2008.